One Shot
by storyfyingmaj
Summary: One mistake brings Flack, Mac, and Stella straight into the middle of danger - will they make it out alive?
1. Prologue

Dedicated to the lovely _Lily Moonlight_ who provided me with the prompt.

* * *

**Prologue**

You see him looking right into your eyes  
And you smile through your pain.  
The wordless fear that he tries to hide  
In that loving hazel gaze  
Breaks your heart in two  
'Cause you know that he's just as scared as you.  
Squeeze his trembling hand -  
Tell him that you're fine behind your broken skin...

Every moment that goes by  
You die a little more inside.  
You see her steady emerald gaze,  
Holding on for you despite the pain.  
Press your fingers in -  
Feel the blood trembling beneath your skin.  
Tell her that she's fine -  
Smile even though you know she might not live...

Breathe in, breathe out -  
You know time's just ticking by.  
Don't say aloud  
All the fears you have inside.  
Every moment matters now -  
Can't be wasting any time.  
There's so much to say,  
Just not good-bye - never good-bye.

Nothing else matters now,  
Hold her in your arms and don't you let her go.  
Don't you worry now,  
He's right there beside you so there's a little hope.

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_Listen to this on YouTube (LINK COMING SOON)._

Lyrics & Melody by Jackie [operationvenus(FanFiction)/storyfyingmaj(Tumblr)/missapplejacksx(YouTube)]  
Instrumental by EAProductions20(YouTube)


	2. I

**_One Shot_**

* * *

**I.**

**Thursday, May 17, 2012  
****New York, New York 2:22 pm**

Stella let out a shuddering gasp as she clutched the gaping hole in her side. Another hoarse sigh escaped her lips as she fell backwards against the wall, the coarse cement digging into her thin linen shirt as she slid to the ground. The warmth spreading beneath her fingers frightened her and sent a sudden chill sweeping through her body.

The spot was growing quickly - much too quickly.

(…was it as quiet as she imagined it?)

Her eyes fluttered, sweeping over everything but focusing on nothing.

_God. _

(The bullet had hit her.)

_Concentrate, Stella. You need to concentrate._

She wondered where all her strength had gone.

_Pressure. Need to keep pressure. _

(Her hands were shaking.)

_God. Oh, God._

A strong hand clapped over hers, bringing with it a much welcome wave of sharp pain.

She looked up, meeting a pair of familiar hazel eyes. Mac's intense gaze, his face tight with a fear of his own, shocked her - terrified her.

_Please don't let him see how scared I am. _

He drew close to her, moving between her and the wall - holding her in his arms. His tone was so calm, so soothing and even, but a coarseness raked his assurances, spoken behind an uncertain smile, "You're fine, Stella - you're going to be fine."

"Don't worry, Mac," she mustered a small lift of her lips, a gesture she hoped was convincing, "I'm okay."

_I'm okay._


	3. II

**_One Shot_  
**

* * *

**II.**

**Thursday, May 17, 2012  
****New York, New York 2:****25**** pm**

Flack knocked his head back upon the plaster, averting his eyes from the couple that was huddled against the far wall.

Despite the distance between him and his friends, he could still see the grave edge to Mac's expression and the ever fading pallor of Stella's.

_Damn you, Flack._

_Damn._

_Damn. _

_Damn._

(He wondered if the curse he had so repeated in the past half hour was being reiterated by the other man.)

Flack teased the knot of his tie with a slow hand, his gaze once again drawn to them.

(He was all too aware of the darkly clothed men keeping watch.)

Mac, seeming to sense his scrutiny, raised his head, blankly looking across the room at him.

_Damn you, Flack._

(Mac didn't share his sentiment.)

His guilt wasn't appeased and he seemed to be thinking that curse against himself plenty enough for the both of them. He knew it didn't help matters but he was a professional at beating himself over things – even those that he knew he could do nothing about.

(Sadly.)

_Damn. _

Flack carefully glanced up at the MP5 pointed at his head.

(The tanned muscleman was speaking to another of his group in some foreign language.)

The robbers – if that was what they were – weren't particularly slick but came well-equipped and well-prepared.

Flack had seen the packs of weaponry brought into the bank when their captors had dragged them in from the alley. The variety and number of firearms had both surprised and worried him.

(These stoic heavies seemed to be ready for a war.)

They had also caught his attention rather quickly.

(Or perhaps it was that he had caught theirs…)

_Almost as if…_

His guilt gave way to his bewilderment as he continued to watch the men that guarded them with their military-grade arms…

(The situation was more complicated than he could have ever perceived.)

…and caught sight of one of them setting up a television camera.

* * *

N.B. On days I update, there will be one update in the mornings and one later in the day.


	4. III

_**One Shot**_

* * *

**II****I****.**

**Thursday, May 17, 2012  
****New York, New York 2:****42**** pm**

Lindsay leaned against her car as she eyed the building sitting on the corner of 2nd Avenue and East 73rd Street. She had just barely parked across the intersection, in front of the small pizzeria, when a cruiser showed up. She had watched as an officer stalked outside the bank, peering into the tinted glass before immediately backing away. Sensing the urgency, she quickly made her way across the street as the officer returned to his vehicle, gesticulating at his partner who reached for their radio.

She called out, careening towards them, "Is something wrong?"

"Ma'am!" the first shouted, waving a hand, "I'm going to have to ask you to stay back!"

"Detective Lindsay Monroe!" she tore out her badge, waving it at the man, as she came to stand next to him.

"Ma'am – "

The man cut off, grabbing her by the arm, as he slammed his door shut. The driver moved the cruiser across the intersection, parking along the curb on the other side of the pizzeria as the officer dragged her away from the building.

She still had time to get a glimpse of the men in black, submachine guns in hand, standing near the entrance of the bank.

The officer quickly ushered her back across the street, towards their vehicles. A quick exchange between the two let her know that he and his partner had come to check the tripping of the silent alarm and that his cursory glance through the windows had shown him many well-built men with weapons standing around the perimeter of the large room.

One of these men had slapped a sign on the inside of the glass, telling him to call for backup.

What chilled Lindsay was the listing of the agencies that the hostiles suggested: FBI and Homeland Security.

This wasn't anything that she could have predicted.

She had come in response to a cryptic text sent to her by Flack

_2. E73. MS help_

and had immediately figured the numbers to be streets and that the man required some sort of help but had no idea what "MS" stood for.

That is, until the officer also mentioned that he had been at a crime scene less than a block away with Detectives Taylor and Bonasera.

Now with the additional knowledge of the antagonistic presence of some sort within the bank, the realization that her friends were in great danger dawned upon Lindsay.

Looking across the intersection again, she understood that things were about to become very complicated.


End file.
